Buying Windows 7 in the US for foreign use ?
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Buying Windows 7 in the US for foreign use ?
Hi everyone,
Seeing the outrageously insane prices of Windoz 7 in France (from 199€ to 319€ depending on version, for the full version, not the upagrade), I'm thinking of buying it in the USA. Just the great exchange rate makes it worth it (1€ for 1,35 $).
the question is : will I be able to install the US version in France ?
I hope MS doesn't have one of those stupid country restrictions built in the thing... I googled around a bit, but I didn't get very lucky.
Seeing the outrageously insane prices of Windoz 7 in France (from 199€ to 319€ depending on version, for the full version, not the upagrade), I'm thinking of buying it in the USA. Just the great exchange rate makes it worth it (1€ for 1,35 $).
the question is : will I be able to install the US version in France ?
I hope MS doesn't have one of those stupid country restrictions built in the thing... I googled around a bit, but I didn't get very lucky.
Of course that would be possible, but the resells and gov'ts get a hold on rules and prices..almost like gasoline.
The question made me ponder my vid card just purchased, with a NTSC and PAL jumper switch.. I thought "how old school?!" If I want to encode pal, I do it no matter where the jumper is ...
The question made me ponder my vid card just purchased, with a NTSC and PAL jumper switch.. I thought "how old school?!" If I want to encode pal, I do it no matter where the jumper is ...
Install and activate, yeah sure. However, unless you're going to the US for a visit, I'm not sure if you can buy it for shipping to France. There are import/export restrictions that might prevent you from doing so. I know Amazon will only ship to US. Even if you do find somewhere/someone that will ship to you, there's still the problem of import taxes in case your country's strict about those.
Hmm...except that the language localizations are available to everyone for free (at least with Windows 7). The first run of 'windows update' offers about 83 different language packs as optional updates. Personally, i think it has much more to do with local country tax issues and distribution costs.Gojira-X wrote:IIRC the localised copies of windows are more expensive due to Microsoft paying a company in that region to translate their software into that language (at least with Hebrew and Hindi it is).
Have you considered buying Windows 7 in the UK?
It should be allot cheaper that France with the weak pound.
Last time I looked (about ten minutes ago) MS made it very difficult to buy Windows via their US digital download store to anyone outside the US. Vista is $130 from MS US, £166 from MS UK. Right now £1~=$1.6 so the latter is roughly $250, ie. twice the price. I cannot, it seems, use my Visa, Mastercard or American Express cards to pay for this. Yes we have VAT here, but it's 15% not 100%. Moreover barring a few disagreements about vowel placement, we speak the same language. I fail to see how the distribution costs of international digital delivery are in any significant way worth $120.piglover wrote:Personally, i think it has much more to do with local country tax issues and distribution costs.
If MS wanted to sell this way, they could. They don't, because it's more profitable not to. I doubt the situation is any different in the Eurozone. Don't be surprised if Ms Neelie Kroes gets out of her box one day on this issue, and MS ends up on the wrong end of yet another €1bn fine.
hahaha !! (PS : currently dual booting XP and Ubuntu )One word: Linux.
I don't like it. I tried but no... (not yet anyway)
Just to get back on topic : Thank you all for your input. I'll be going on a business trip to the US in december, and I'll get a version there. I'll just unwrap the content of the box in case I get searched by customs on my way back.
I tried getting one from the UK, but no luck so far.
Off topic : if I manage to get a good deal, I might get an ssd too
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It looks like you can switch between languages if you get Ultimate:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/window ... fault.aspx
Probably not an issue for you but maybe others in the household? I'm not trying to upsell you or anything. I thought it was lame that I couldn't switch my wife's laptop with XP Home Ed. to Spanish to give to her family.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/window ... fault.aspx
Probably not an issue for you but maybe others in the household? I'm not trying to upsell you or anything. I thought it was lame that I couldn't switch my wife's laptop with XP Home Ed. to Spanish to give to her family.
not really an issue - there's no real restrictions from the government, only private price-control. you can get a us copy from a private seller (check pricegrabber or ebay us), they will ship it as long as you pay the overseas shipping rate. the shipping/handling will add probably $25-30 so count that towards the final price.